


Family Affairs of the Busybody Sort

by magicasen



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: F/F, Matchmaking, Misunderstandings, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Sister-Sister Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-27
Updated: 2013-10-27
Packaged: 2017-12-30 14:42:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1019892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicasen/pseuds/magicasen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prevent the Fell Dragon’s awakening before Ylisse is subjugated by the power of True Evil, and bring peace to the world. Simple enough, for a hero! </p><p>Well, that’s how it’s supposed to go. Then her mother’s suffering from a broken heart, her other mother doesn’t even know Cynthia’s her daughter, her sister’s going to take her frustration out on the next poor sap to cross her path, and the tales to be told of her to future generations are morphing from epics to comedies right before Cynthia's eyes. </p><p>Looks like she and Severa will have to save their future in more ways than one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Family Affairs of the Busybody Sort

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt on emblanon: 
> 
> "Awakening, any first-gen f/f pairing where at least one has a kid. The arrival of their kid(s) from the future has accidentally diverted the course of history because the mothers assume they must eventually put aside their ~hopeless feelings~ and get with a dude so the kids can exist. But actually, no, it was [insert method of your choice - magical or otherwise - here], and the kids have two mothers.
> 
> So the kids have to matchmake their parents. Hilarity ensues!"
> 
> Thank you to kairosity @ tumblr for the beta! Any mistakes remaining are my own.

Cynthia buried her head in Sumia’s chest, shoulders quivering in her attempt to hold back the sobs. Crying was unbecoming of a hero, unless the tears were beautiful, and the weeping was restrained. A choked hiccup escaped from her. “Oh…oh, Mother…I love you!” Her hand couldn’t reach her nose to wipe it from this angle, so she settled for a deep sniffle. Ugh, definitely not beautiful. “Oh gosh, sorry, I’m such a mess…”

There was a pause. “Don’t apologize. You can let it all out.” Sumia rested a hand atop Cynthia’s head, and proceeded to stroke it.

Cynthia let herself be lulled by the soothing sensation, dimly aware of a stray lock of hair being tucked behind her ear. Sumia’s fingers brushed against the wing ornament clipped there and stilled.

Before she could register the movement, Cynthia found herself eye to eye with Sumia. Her face was framed between Sumia’s fingers, and Sumia peered at her. “There’s a matching one on the other side, too,” she muttered, and Cynthia had the distinct feeling those words weren’t being directed towards her. She squirmed under the scrutiny, self-conscious all of a sudden, and tried not to sniffle again.

“Wait, just let me-” She disentangled herself from Sumia’s hold, took out a handkerchief, and blew her nose, startling a giggle out of her mother. She repeated the action twice more, and the giggles shifted from hesitant and awkward to light and easy. The sound was like a bard’s flute, no, even better, a bird’s song, Cynthia decided, as Sumia brought out her own handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes.

“Here, you can have this one, too!” Sumia offered the cloth to Cynthia, but she shook her head in answer.

“Oh, don’t you worry about me, Mother! Severa’s always going on about how I make such a mess and, well, after a while, even her grouching over what an embarrassment I am gets under my skin. So! I’ve learned to carry around two, just in case!” Cynthia brandished her second handkerchief from her pack and beamed. Her mind caught up to her words just spoken, and her face fell. “Wait, do you know Severa? Is she around?”

“Severa?” A small, vacant smile came to Sumia’s lips. “That’s Cordelia’s daughter, isn’t it? Then yes, we’ve met.” Her eyebrows furrowed, as if searching for her next words, before pressing on. “I’m not really used to her type of personality but, you know, I can tell she’s a great person! Cordelia’s lucky to have someone like her.”

“Huh?”

Cynthia was faintly aware her mouth was agape, and that she was, well - she was _gawking_ at Sumia.

But, what, how -

 _Why_ was Mother talking about Severa like that?

“Oh, I get it!” Sumia chirped as she reached out to Cynthia and fingered her hair clip. “You two really are your mothers’ children. Are you and Severa bosom buddies, as well? It’s a little unexpected, but I’m happy! She must have inherited this from Cordelia, and gave it to you, then?” Her hand trembled as she traced the outline of the wing.

The rapture of the tearful reunion had vanished, shoved aside and replaced by utter bewilderment. Cynthia’s mind raced, spewing out any explanation, no matter how far-fetched. Maybe, somehow, she had missed her mark and ended up in this past, one that looked right on the surface, and its imperfections and inconsistencies only revealed upon closer examination. _Like a doppelganger_ , she thought, almost panicked, but not as much as she had been when she heard how her mother spoke of Severa.

“Mother, are you alri-“

“Cynthia!”

Thank the gods.

“Severa!” Cynthia cried out. “Oh, you don’t know how happy I am to see you! Mother must have hit her head, that or Naga messed up and this is some evil alternate timeline, one where you and I aren’t - hey!“

“Come. Here!” Severa gave her arm another yank and turned to Sumia, who stiffened at the motion. “I’m sorry, Sumia, but your daughter and I need to have a talk. In private.”

“Your daughter?” parroted Cynthia.

Sumia nodded fiercely. “Of course!” Her eyes darted between the two of them, searching out a meaning behind the abrupt development. To no avail, for Severa avoided her gaze, and Cynthia was sure her own face mirrored the puzzlement on of her mother’s. “Should I wait here, or-”

“That won’t be necessary,” Severa supplied. “Rather, I heard mention of someone’s horse being unable to settle down after the battle. They think it might have gotten nicked by an arrow.”

The change in Sumia’s demeanor was so sudden, Cynthia did a double take. _This_ was more how she had imagined her mother, legend of the Ylissian pegasus knights, determination and drive rolling off of her in waves. “Thank you for letting me know. I’m sorry, girls, I’ll head over to camp to see how I can help.” She turned to Cynthia, her expression a feeble attempt at reassurance. “Cynthia, we should have a proper chat once everything’s calmed down.”

“Of course, Mother,” Cynthia said, then allowed her smile to set into a firm frown as Sumia hurried off. Was this person really her mother? Cynthia and Severa winced when Sumia stumbled, but she quickly regained her balance, her concern for the well-being of the company’s animals preceding any clumsy tendencies.

Cynthia’s vision of her was so shadowed, warped by the distance of nostalgia and sorrow, that she couldn’t say with certainty she had the same face. But she had the same name. There was no ring, Cynthia realized with a start, but there were the familiar beads wrapped around her ringlets.

She yelped as Severa yanked her arm for the third time, but this time she followed through with the motion, pulling Cynthia along. “Don’t trip,” Severa shot at her, “and what took you so long to show your face, anyway?” Cynthia decided against speaking up while Severa was in such a mood. She settled for studying her, instead, watching the light from the sun caught on the beads tied around her ashen hair, glinting off of the stones.

Severa was incessant with the hooded glances thrown back over her shoulder, checking to see that no one was within earshot, up until they stopped in a nearby grove under the flimsy cover of a few trees. Cynthia felt so tense, nerves pulled tight with anxiety, that the moment Severa released her grip, words rushed out of her like a flood. “Severa, you’re my Severa, right? I think there’s something really, seriously wrong with this past, Mother talked about you like she didn’t even know you, and-“

Severa stopped her torrent with a silencing hand. “First things first. This is definitely our past. There’s nothing wrong, timeline-wise.” Severa’s shoulders slumped at the admission. She crossed her arms and let out a harsh huff. “It’s just, god, I knew Mother was the type of person who’d sooner forget that romance is something that exists, even if it pirouetted nude in front of her. Of course. Perfect people can’t handle conflict. And, well, Mom is sort of dense.” Severa screwed her face up. “But, between the two of them, I didn’t realize things could get _this_ bad! Mother didn’t even believe me at first, when I told her I was her daughter.”

Severa aimed a kick at a rock in her path and, not satisfied with the well-formed arc of its impromptu flight, glowered at a nearby boulder as if sizing it up. “This is just our luck. The rest of the parents are married off already – some of the others might not have shown their faces yet, but at least their folks have their acts together.”

Cynthia stood in silence, pondering Severa’s words slowly and carefully like she had been repeatedly scolded to. When she reached the meaning of them, it came as a jolt. It felt like falling off her pegasus’s back, her stomach dropping out of her body and her heart sinking faster than gravity.

“Hey, so it’s,” Cynthia faltered, “wait, are you saying, as far as they know, our mothers shouldn’t even have us?”

“That’s right.” Severa looked ready to spit on the ground, and if she didn’t care so much about appearances, might have done so. “They don’t even have their love lives together. Having some random person going up and telling them ‘Hi! I’m the new recruit, oh, and by the way, I’m your daughter from the future’ was like getting smacked upside the head with a forged log.” She smiled bitterly. “You should have seen the look on Mother’s face when I told her.”

Cynthia considered it. In all seriousness, if a stranger her age came up to her and told her that they were her child from the future? She grimaced. Cordelia’s reaction was understandable. Sumia had handled it well, too, in fact. Cynthia herself probably would have had a fit of uncontrollable laughter – better that than freaking out and scarring her hypothetical child.

“Uh, if they don’t know, can we just…well, tell them?” she asked, already conscious of the answer.

Severa gritted her teeth. “No way. I can’t even imagine how many ways that could go wrong. Besides, how would you think that’d make them feel? ‘By the way, I know who you end up with, so get to it! Even have the ring right here, if you need it.’ It’s just so…wrong.” Severa shuddered, and her hand tugged at her collar, where Cynthia knew, hidden underneath, she wore Cordelia’s ring on a necklace. “And confusing them will make everything even worse.”

“…You’re right. We couldn’t do that to them. But, but then, what do we _do_!?” The pitch in Cynthia’s voice approached hysteria. She wished a Risen was still skulking around, ready to be lanced through by a righteous hero. Even if said righteous hero was currently in the throes of a berserker fury, justice would still be on their side. “Are you saying we just have to hide it? Everything!?”

“Yes, that’s what I’m saying. At least until those two work it out. They managed it once without us; they can do it again. Hopefully.” Severa sighed. “It’ll be harder to keep it a secret now, with both of us here. We have to be careful not to slip what we really are to each other. I’ve already told all the others about our situation – no one’s screwed things up. Yet.”

Cynthia stared at Severa in disbelief. They had been together their entire lives and, even though Severa would never admit to it, they were almost inseparable. The idea of faking some sort of distance was surreal.

Deception was a common theme in legends – the idea of secret identities, masks used for the sake of protecting others had enthralled Cynthia just as much as riveting speeches and tearful declarations of love. This could just be another chance to build up her heroic resume.

For that moment, though, with her sister unable to meet her eyes, and after having seen her mother look upon that daughter with wary eyes and a guarded stance, Cynthia couldn’t find it in herself to muster up the courage to face down this herculean task.

* * *

 

“Cordelia!”

Cordelia whirled around. Her posture was stiff and alert, but she visibly relaxed upon seeing who had called her name. She smiled, relieved. Sumia’s heart skipped a beat. “Oh, Sumia! I was looking for you - are you well? You weren’t hurt during the battle, were you?”

“Yes, I’m fine! I heard there was trouble with one of the horses?”

Cordelia fixed her gaze on something beyond Sumia’s right ear and frowned. Sumia recognized the gesture; Cordelia must be racking her brain for answers. She waited for her friend to respond. Cordelia’s mouth opened as if to answer, then closed.

“Not that I’m aware of? I was just in the stables, and they all seemed in perfect health. Someone told you that wasn’t the case?”

It was Sumia’s turn to frown. Severa seemed a serious girl, and it wasn’t like they were close - she wouldn’t have told her the news unless she thought it were the truth. Maybe Severa had been misled somehow? Whatever the case, Sumia felt reluctant to name her in front of her mother.

“No, it doesn’t matter. As long as none of them are hurt, it’s fine.”

“Indeed. I just passed Robin, and there were no casualties this battle, once again. Quite the accomplishment – for being led by an imposter, those mercenaries were no pushovers. A tribute to our fine tactician.” Cordelia hummed in approval. “Have you heard the news? We have a new recruit. She was actually one of the enemy’s pegasus knights, but joined our army once Chrom spoke with her. I caught a glimpse of her - she had red hair and wore armor much like ours. But moreover, she’s actually another child from the future-“

“Ah!” Sumia’s voice stuck in her throat. “Ah - yes! Yes! I’ve met her, actually!” Cordelia’s expression shifted to curiosity, and Sumia’s mouth went dry as she debated how to phrase her next words.

“Mm.” Sumia avoided Cordelia’s expectant gaze, choosing to look at the ground instead.

“Sumia? …Earth to Sumia? Hello?”

There was nothing for her hands to do besides grab her skirt. Sumia grabbed the edge and tugged lightly.

“Are you sure you’re unhurt? Hey!”

The leather on the fingertips of the left glove was fraying, she noted.

“Sumia!” Hands on her shoulders, and Cordelia’s face was next to hers _. Too close, too close_ , and she jerked back.

“I’m fine! It’s just, I’m not sure how to say this, haha!” Her laughter rang hollow. “Her name’s Cynthia,” she started.

“That’s a pretty name,” Cordelia commented carefully.

“And she’s - ” Sumia took a deep breath - “She’s my daughter!”

If it had been any other conversation, Sumia would have found the dumbstruck expression on Cordelia’s face hilarious and might have teased her for it. It wasn’t a side of her friend she often got to see.

Now, it only made her want to shrink down further.

If she didn’t think too hard, it felt like none of this was real. She couldn’t feel the pounding of her heart, nor the heat of the sun or the coolness of the breeze. With detachment like this and a sense of awareness barely there, she could pretend it was all a dream.

“From the future, I mean,” she added meekly.

Those words seemed to snap Cordelia out of her daze, and because she was _Cordelia_ , she already had a smile on her face. “Oh Sumia, I don’t know what to say. It’s a bit shocking. But, congratulations! It’s splendid that she’s with us safely now, and I’m so glad for you.”

Sumia was pulled into a hug.

“Ah-“

Something twisted in Sumia’s gut in that moment. Cordelia’s warm smile and her earnest words, too palpable to be fabricated by her own mind as if she were dreaming, broke the illusion she had crafted. Sumia tasted bitterness at the back of her throat.

Despite the exceptional circumstances, Cordelia gave a chorus-perfect response, one that, as her best friend, she should be proud of. When their roles were switched a few weeks ago, Sumia had spluttered, barely able to eek out sounds, let alone speak, in a dazed shock.

But that wasn’t the cause of the tightness in her chest, was it? Feeling incompetent in a side-by-side comparison to Cordelia was one of the drawbacks, inconsequential as it was, of being so close to her, and Sumia gladly embraced it if it meant she could stay with her.

No, it was because Cordelia was genuinely happy for her. And Sumia…Sumia didn’t want her well-wishes, nor did she deserve them. Sumia closed her eyes and felt like a horrid person.

“Thank you, Cordelia. Coming from you, that means the world.” _In more ways than one_ , she thought, as she wrapped her arms around her friend.

* * *

 

“Ah, you’re-“

“Eep!” Cynthia jumped. _Too careless, Cynthia!_ she berated herself. She made a show of straightening her dress, reluctant to turn around and come face to face with the source of the voice.

“I startled you. I apologize.”

“Don’t worry! It’s not a problem!” Cynthia braced herself, spun around, then knew she still hadn’t prepared enough. This was the nearest she had been to her, ever since the initial round of greetings that Robin encouraged her to do. With every other Shepherd that was so-inclined, she had engaged in lengthy, compelling conversation and even a few spur-of-the-moment escapades. Here, she had hurriedly introduced herself and then fled under the pretense of completing a chore for Frederick. She had proceeded to spend the few days since eluding her, turning corners and altering course, recalling a forgotten object left behind in her tent, or the dining quarters, or the training grounds, whenever she caught her in her sight.

Cynthia gasped and desperately wished, with how close they were standing, that Cordelia didn’t notice how rapidly she was blinking.

“Ah, well, it’s – you’re Cynthia – it’s a pleasure to meet you, Cynthia, I’m Cordelia. No, no, wait we already established that.” Cordelia broke off and looked mortified.

Cynthia was taken aback. She had avoided direct contact with Cordelia, yes, but she had still kept an eye on her – inconspicuously, she hoped. But from all of her observations, along with the way others from her own future had spoken of her, flustered fit Cordelia just about as well as poised did Sumia.

“Uh, yup! You’re Severa’s mother, right?” Cynthia grinned, hoping that the enthusiasm injected into her voice would reach her smile, as well. If she was already caught in this situation, then at least she'd want Cordelia to feel at ease.

“Oh, yes, I am. Er, Severa’s mother, that is,” Cordelia said.

“Right, and I’m Sumia’s daughter! It’s an honor to meet you! You’re a legend in my time!”

“I, well, I’m, I suppose I’m proud of garnering such honor as being remembered in the future,” Cordelia said, and flushed. “I-I apologize, I don’t know what’s gotten into me today.”

“Maybe Mother has rubbed off on you!” Cynthia laughed.

Cordelia’s flush turned scarlet. Cynthia gulped.

“Um, are you alright? You’re really red.” Cordelia’s verbal floundering ~~,~~ and her physical reaction unnerved Cynthia. An alarming thought struck her. “Y-you’re not sick or anything, are you!?”

“No, heavens, I’m fine - “

Her protesting was cut off by Cynthia, who had removed a glove and placed her palm on Cordelia’s forehead.

“Oh no, oh no, you’re kind of warm!” Cynthia exclaimed. “You need to go visit the medical tent and rest!” The pitch of her voice grew shriller with each word.

Cordelia shifted under her touch. “Oh, I couldn’t. Truth is, I was actually on my way to help with preparations for dinner, and - “

“No!” Cordelia jumped, and Cynthia froze at her own outburst. “I mean,” Cynthia dropped her hand and stared at her feet, shame rendering her unable to look Cordelia in the eye, “I know that you do a lot around camp, and I’ve been around for not even a week! You’re a beacon of light for the camp! Well, not literally, since you’re not ethereal. Point is, if something bad happens to you, then it’ll just upset people!” _Especially me, and Mother, and Severa,_ she wanted to add, but too many of those words were too personal to share. She finally settled for, “and Severa will get angry.”

Cordelia laughed, and Cynthia peeked back up. Cordelia smiled at her, eyes full of warmth and affection, and Cynthia’s heart raced. She bit the inside of her cheek, fighting not to show any emotion.

“You’re right. I’m sorry that I worried you,” Cordelia said. “What about this? I’ll stop by the medical tent for a drink of a water. Laurent’s on-duty – if I really am in danger of running a fever, he wouldn’t let me leave until he’s recorded all of my symptoms and mixed me a concoction from a dozen different herbs and lord knows what else. How does that sound?”

Cynthia smiled back and nodded in lieu of words. Her throat felt tight. She wasn’t sure she could speak without breaking into sobs.

Cordelia’s eyes were focused on the ornaments in her hair and she gave a slight nod. “Truth be told, I didn’t see the similarities between you and Sumia at first. But now I do.”

Cynthia scratched her cheek with her finger, the tension in her body subsiding at the change of topic. “O-oh, is that so? I don’t think you saw me yesterday carrying that sack of potatoes, then! Lon’qu was really mad when I spilled them all over the ground, even though their skins all stayed on and everything!” she lamented. “Well, he didn’t yell or anything. He just glared…and didn’t say a word, which might be even worse, really.”

Cordelia chuckled. “That wasn’t what I was referring to. You’re an immensely kind and caring person, Cynthia. I can see why Severa likes you so much.”

Cynthia froze. “W-wait up, did Severa say anything about me?” She had tiptoed around the subject of Severa with Sumia, fearful of the off-chance of accidentally revealing something if they broached the subject. She had assumed Severa would do the same with mentioning Cynthia to Cordelia.

“She didn’t,” Cordelia said, settling Cynthia’s fears. “She hasn’t mentioned you at all. But, I noticed that, well, there’s a chip on your hairclip here, see?” She reached for Cynthia, whose first instinct was to freeze up, and ran her finger over the ornament in Cynthia’s hair. “It happened when we were in the mountains to the far northeast of Regna Ferox. I dismounted my pegasus, and, well, no matter how long we had traveled that day - I was careless and didn’t notice that I had stepped on ice. And I slipped. Managed to catch myself, but I flailed about and sent this,” she touched the ornament in her own hair, “flying. And it got nicked, here.” _In the exact same spot as yours_ , but there was no need for those words to be spoken to be understood.

Forget subtlety. Cynthia should have made a run for it once she heard Cordelia’s voice.

“Um,” Cynthia stalled, searching for what to say. The truth would be best, she decided – Severa always told her she was a bad liar. “Yeah. These are yours….uhm, to be more specific, they’re from another you that also slipped and fell on ice. Funny how that works out, huh?”

Cordelia’s expression was thoughtful. “Severa’s beads look familiar as well. They’re Sumia’s, aren’t they?”

This time around, Cynthia thought it would be for the best to not answer her question. Was omitting the truth the same as lying? Even so, even lies could be justified at times. Cynthia wondered if there was some way to backpedal through the entire conversation, and allowed the silence to stretch on, before concluding that plan A was unfeasible.

“You know!” Cynthia almost shouted, and Cordelia jumped. “You said you were going to help out with dinner! So, since you’re in dire need of examination for symptoms of high fever and nausea, I have decided that I will go in your stead!” She crossed her right arm over her chest, locking it at the elbow, palm flat, and aimed her other hand, fingers stretched, towards Cordelia, who was too stunned to do anything more than blink once.

“Stand aside! I’ll be your hero today, Cordelia!”

“Wait, wha - “

“Well, I’m off! Catch you later, alligator!” _Don’t run, that’d look too suspicious_ , Cynthia reminded herself as she walked, faster than altogether necessary and ignoring the _Wait!_ called out from behind her, around the corner, where she took off into a dash.

When necessary, even heroes resorted to tactical retreats.

* * *

 

“Welcome, ladies! Make yourselves at home.”

Cynthia spun around, marveling in the sights of the items on display crammed into every square inch of the tent. The only sense of organization in the tent was in the front tables which were dedicated to the weapons. The arms were polished to gleaming with nary a nick to be seen, and the tomes were bound with leather without a single blotch or blemish. The rest of the surfaces were cluttered with assorted items and knickknacks, not an insignificant number of which appeared to have been enchanted. Tucked away in the corner was a bench with various bottles and potions set atop of it. It seemed to pique Severa’s interest, who approached and kneeled down next to it. Cynthia was wondering where to start browsing when the merchant sidled up beside her.

“I’ve got some special wares in today. From your attire, I must be correct in assuming you may be interested in this brush? The hairs are so fine, they’ll lift the dirt right up off your pegasus.”

Before Cynthia had a chance to respond, the merchant had flitted around the edge of a table and picked up an ornate brush inlaid with gemstones. She offered it to Cynthia, who took it after a moment of hesitation, running her thumb over its bristles and letting out a gasp.

“Wow, you’re right! I don’t think my pegasus has ever been combed with a brush this nice! How much, how much?”

“Well, a brush of this quality is quite rare. The hairs on it are from the mane of a single pegasus foal.”

“Oh,” Cynthia intoned. _Sounds expensiv_ _e_ , she thought.

Her expression must have given away her thoughts, for the merchant waved a hand and beamed. “ _However_ , I wanted to sell it off to a pegasus knight, but hadn’t seen a proper one around in ages. Plus you’re so young and energetic! It’ll make me happy to see you happy. So, how about I put this item on sale, just for you! How does, say... forty gold pieces sound?”

Cynthia hoped her wince wasn’t too noticeable. “Forty…” That was spending money for a month's worth of sweets and snacks. She pulled out her bag and made a show of counting the pieces, knowing full well she had enough. Just barely. “Is there no way to lower the price? Just a bit?” she asked meekly.

The merchant clucked. “Oh no, dear. Any lower, and I’d be making a loss! You seem quite the lovely young lady, but I can’t let instinct and emotions operate my business!”

Cynthia gripped the brush with one hand and let her fingers lingering over the hairs. She was about ready to hand it back over with an apology when a voice reminiscent of Sumia’s drifted to the front of her thoughts. _A partner and ally, and must be cared for as much as a knight cares for herself…_

“Ahh!”

The merchant jumped at her outburst.

“I’m sorry, Mother! I’m not neglecting my pegasus, I swear! I’ll take it!” Cynthia made a move to shove her hand into the bag, but aborted the motion in favor of tipping it over and dumping out the entirety of its contents onto the table.

“Oh!”

Cynthia ran her fingers through the brush for the umpteenth time as she made her way over to Severa, still examining the bottles. Severa raised an eyebrow when she saw what Cynthia was holding, but after hearing Cynthia heave a deep sigh, she held her tongue.

“Whatcha looking at?” Cynthia picked up a small vial from the collection. The liquid was a pretty subdued rose. She gave it an experimental whirl and it turned a bright, angry crimson.

Cynthia set the vial back down.

“You can’t blame the others for turning down the invite; I mean, Lucina wanted to sit in a strategy meeting with Chrom and Robin, and Noire, was, uh... I think she was in the middle of hiding from someone.” Knowing Noire, that someone could be anyone.

Severa shot Cynthia a glance, and her eyes softened almost imperceptibly. She turned her attention back to the bottles. “It’s not that. I’m not some spoiled child who throws a fit when things don’t go their way. If you must know, I was wondering if I could find the elixir responsible for. Uh.” Severa blushed. “Our conception.”

Cynthia blinked in stupefaction. She looked at Severa, who had begun chewing on her lip. “Conception?” She tilted her head, ran a thumb over the tips of the brush once again, and suddenly felt her own face grow hot. “Ah! Ah, right! You mean the ones our mothers used, where if you drink it, it makes you grow a - “

“Shut. _Up_!” Severa barked, face an expression of horror.

“Girls, could I be of assistance?” The merchant seemed to have materialized next to them from Severa’s outburst and was frowning at them. “Also, if I could ask you not to be so loud? It’ll scare the other customers, you see!”

Severa looked down at her feet. “Sorry for the outburst. I was just wondering if you had a certain elixir. It’s responsible for, uh, changes to a person. Should be an opaque blue.”

“I heard it burns,” added Cynthia, which netted her a severe glare from Severa.

“Blue?” The merchant crossed her arms and rested her finger on her cheek. “Ah! Ah, yes, I know what you’re talking about, then! I’m surprised, not many people specify that one!” The merchant leaned over the table, and after passing over several and pulling back with a muttered _no, that’s not it_ , plucked a small bottle with only a few gulps worth of liquid from amongst the dozens laden on the table. “This one should be it! If this is all you wanted, that’ll be ten gold pieces.”

“Oh?” Severa exchanged a glance with Cynthia. “That’s…surprisingly cheap. I didn’t realize it was so common…” If Severa blushed any harder, Cynthia thought she might turn purple.

“Well, it’s kind of a niche item. But good choice – I know one of my sisters uses it regularly.”

Cynthia busied herself splitting the hairs on the comb as Severa spluttered helplessly.

* * *

 

Anna tested the weight of her money pouch. To much pleasure but little surprise, it was far heavier than it had been before her latest two sales. She almost felt a little bad for the naive little pegasus knight.

She ran her eye over the collection of potions, and her eyes remained on one of the bottles. Anna picked it up and examined in, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. It didn’t work.

“Ah – drats!”

She hurried out of the tent and looked around, but to no avail, for the two customers were long gone. They had paid for the elixir just a few minutes prior, but had been in such a rush they had scampered away after paying. It was fruitless to try to run after them.

Anna didn’t know why they had been in such a hurry, but she had assumed that they might have been especially eager to try out the hair dye.

“But it wasn’t dye, was it? That was careless of me. The dye isn’t opaque, it’s clear.”

Well, they had asked for the opaque blue one, anyway, so they did get what they came for. Anna frowned, trying to recall more specific information about it.

It had come from one of her sisters, who had thrown it in along with a handful of other elixirs to entice her into agreeing to a trade. She never did learn its purpose, although she had left it on display anyways. It was a sapphire color and was pretty to look at, so it might have made for a choice adornment.

Her sister hadn’t specified what it did either, just that she had picked up in the Outrealms, so it was possible she didn’t know what it was for, either. But the mercenary girl seemed to have an idea of its purpose, and that puzzled Anna; she didn’t seem the type to have esoteric knowledge of elixirs that even Anna didn’t.

Anna sighed. “Well, no use crying over spilt milk. Whatever it was, I sure hope it wasn’t worth much…”

* * *

 

Sumia’s fingers smoothed feather-light over Cynthia's hair before being followed through by the rough edges of the hairbrush. “Your hair’s really beautiful. Especially the color,” she commented idly. “It’s a bit tangled, though.”

Cynthia felt her face grow warm at the same moment she winced as another stubborn knot was worked through. “Thanks! And er, sorry about that. Everyone in our family has gorgeous hair, so it’s really just because I don’t bother. It’s my bad. Not that it matters! No one’ll be mentioning all the split ends or knots in the future. It’ll be all, oh, oh, I want to hear the story of Cynthia, the heroine with the crimson locks of fire! Can’t really neglect that part of my hair, can I!”

“Ah, but taking care of your appearance isn’t about others,” Sumia faltered. “Oh, alright, maybe it is, just a little! But if making yourself look the best you can makes you feel the best you can, then it’s worth all the time and trouble.”

“Hm.” Cynthia considered it. Severa was usually in a foul mood, but if her preoccupation with her looks was all just a way for her to not feel so bad, rather than vanity…

She suddenly felt guilty for all of her teasing, or, when things were especially rocky, the derision she directed towards her sister’s primping.

“’Everyone in our family has gorgeous hair,’ was it?” Sumia mused. “Not that anything should be more important than personality, but I’m really lucky, aren’t I?” She punctuated her question with a sharp giggle. “I have a wonderful daughter, and, I know you won’t give me the details for my own good - ” Sumia punctuated that with a sharper tug than altogether necessary - “I also have a kind, brave, and handsome husband. It kind of sounds like one of my fairytales. But this time, I’m the princess waiting for her dashing prince.” Her dreamy words didn’t match her gloomy tone.

Cynthia bit her lip and scratched an itch on her calf harder than necessary. “You used to tell me other sorts of fairytales, too,” she offered in a flimsy attempt to veer away from the topic at hand. “They still had princesses and princes and dragons and knights and everything that makes for an epic tale! But this time, the princes were good-for-nothings - ” she cringedat her word choice - “uh, well, more like too preoccupied with fighting and war and too dense to tell a girl from a toad! It was the brave knight who stole the princess’s heart instead!”

“Hmm, a knight?” Sumia picked up another bundle of hair to brush while Cynthia wondered whether she should reprimand herself. “To sweep me off my feet?”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Cynthia scrambled for a way to keep the situation under control. “I take that back! You’re not really the princess in this tale. It’s kind of like, partner knights, through thick and thin, working together towards a better Ylisse! Wow, that sounds super romantic. Definitely a tale for the ages!”

“A Shepherd, then? But all of them are already married.” Sumia muttered. “Maybe a new recruit?”

Cynthia wanted to retort with _Not every Shepherd’s gotten hitched yet, Mother,_ but bit her tongue. She debated the best way to metaphorically slap her own wrist when she was stuck having to sit perfectly still. Cynthia had already dropped too many hints the last few times she had opened her mouth. She should probably try not to encourage Sumia. She closed her eyes, and Sumia hummed as she continued brushing Cynthia’s hair.

Sometimes, Sumia’s tendency to be a big clod extending to all corners of her life frustrated even Cynthia. She didn’t notice see the small rocks or cracks in her path and ended up tripping over them – not the proudest of moments, but Cynthia could sympathize with that, albeit not to the impressive extent that Sumia managed to garner. But this was like watching her mother smack head-first repeatedly into a stone wall without even realizing it was there.

The color of her hair should be a dead giveaway. No one else in the Shepherds besides Cordelia possessed that shade of red. Plus, Severa’s hair was the same color as Sumia’s. Even if Sumia was a little dense, Cynthia was surprised that Cordelia hadn’t put two and two together, either. Sure, same-sex marriages weren’t quite as common, but, as her mothers had proved, not entirely unheard of. They even had that convenient elixir, even if it would only help female couplesmake their own families. Apparently it was even common enough to only warrant a week’s worth of savings.

Cynthia couldn’t understand what was so difficult about it, but there was no point in getting angry over it. They’d get there, eventually. Hopefully.

There was some cause for concern. Lucina had commented on it, that she had noticed Sumia and Cordelia’s closeness herself when she had joined the company, but lately they’d been drifting apart instead. Severa had scoffed, but Lucina had insisted that they seemed to be spending less time together since Severa’s arrival.

“Is them wanting to spend time with us taking time away from each other?” Cynthia had asked.

“I don’t think it’s that,” Lucina said, ripping off a piece of bread and nibbling on it. “They were almost inseparable beforehand, but now, even during chores they could do together, like brushing their pegasi or gathering water from the well, they complete without company.”

“So they didn’t do that before?” Severa said. Lucina shook her head. She had then excused herself from the dinner table to practice swordplay with Chrom, looking vaguely apologetic, though it couldn't hide hide the skip in her step from her excitement at spending time with her father. Cynthia couldn’t begrudge her – she’d take on the chores of half the army if it meant she would be able to spend time with Cordelia without the weight of hidden secrets hanging over her.

 _That’s it!_ Cynthia, who had been slumped forward, jerked back into an upright position. Sumia squeaked and tugged hard on her hair.

“Ow!”

“Sorry, Cynthia!” Sumia exclaimed. “Uh, I do that with my pegasus when I’m surprised. Not that I think of you as an animal, or anything! …Um. Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m fine!” Cynthia turned and faced Sumia. Sumia blinked, opened her mouth, probably to apologize again, but ended up setting the brush down. “Mother, you know those stories I’ve heard about you?”

“Like, how I went berserk and turned on my allies?” Sumia looked worried. “Because that never happened! It was definitely the work of some dark magic user!” A guilty expression crossed her face at her words. “Oh, but he would never do anything like that, he’s actually quite harmless! Sumia, you can’t think of your poor friends like that!” She pinched herself.

“Mother?” Cynthia waved a hand in front of Sumia.

Sumia shook her head and knocked her knuckles on her head. “Sorry. Go on, Cynthia.”

“Anyways! So, there was another famed pegasus knight I heard about in the legends. You and her were the closest of friends and fated partners!”

“Oh,” Sumia said, her face blank. “Would this other knight happen to be Cordelia, by any chance?”

“Right!” Cynthia clapped her hands together. “I’ve spoken with her a few times, and her beauty and grace are just as they were described!”

“Well, if anyone is larger-than-life, it’d have to be Cordelia, wouldn’t it!” Sumia said, a small smile coming to her face. “I’m happy to hear that we remain close, in the future.”

 _Closer than yo_ _u think_ , Cynthia thought, but she just pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. “I was curious, Mother, if you could introduce me to her? In a more personal setting? I want to see the two most famed pegasus knights of their time interact!” She grinned. “For two people linked together by fate, I don’t think I’ve seen you two talk very much!”

“Ahaha, is that so?” Sumia’s laughter sounded strained. “That’s right, isn’t it? I haven’t hung out with Cordelia much, lately, you’re right.”

“Right, so, arrange a tea session for us! You, me, Cordelia, and Severa!” Cynthia counted them off on her fingers.

“Severa, as well?” Sumia asked.

 _Ack_. “W-well, she’s Cordelia’s daughter, isn’t she? Symmetry is key! Finding parallels between characters is part of what makes tales of heroism so entrancing!”

Sumia tilted her head and stared at Cynthia. Cynthia avoided her eyes and ran her fingers through her hair.

“Right, then, I’ll arrange that!” Sumia was grinning and, oddly, looked proud of herself. “I’m done with brushing your hair - do you want me to tie it back up?”

“Oh, no, I’m fine!” Cynthia said. “I’ll just put these back on.” She picked up one of her hairclips and fastened it in place. She reached for the other one and her hand landed atop of Sumia’s.

“I’ll get this one.” Sumia motioned for Cynthia to turn her head, and swept back the longer bangs of Cynthia’s hair and pinned the clip with the utmost care. Her eyes were soft and warm and full of love while she did. Cynthia blushed, although a voice in the back of her mind reminded her that the gaze wasn’t directed towards her. That was okay. Even though she longed to divert her mother’s attention elsewhere, she resisted the urge to squirm. Sumia’s fingers lingered on the ornament, and Cynthia would let them stay there for as long as her mother wanted – needed – them to be.

* * *

 

The next town they stopped by could barely be called as such ("an overglorified village," Severa had grumbled as they looked for somewhere to have their tea). There was one store building that doubled as an armory; Robin had concluded, upon examination of their wares, that it would be more prudent to take their weaponry needs into their own hands for the time being, or to wait until they reached a proper blacksmith. There was a marketplace with a small handful of farmers and herders, whose goods had been cleared out due to the passage of their army, and a single inn that was the only place in town for a proper sit down.

Sumia stirred her tea – the liquid was in an all-purpose glass, rather than a teacup, and there had been no leaves in the teapot when she had lifted the lid earlier, just a small bag presumably filled with powder. She raised the glass to her lips.

“We ended up searching for her for hours! Even the older recruits and our instructors helped, and, Sumia, tell them where we ended up finding you.”

Sumia almost choked. “What’s with this - all we’ve been doing is picking on me this entire time,” she moaned.

“Oh no, I want to hear the end of this.” Severa’s grin was wicked and eerily matched the one on her mother’s face.

“Ugh. So, I was reading this fascinating novel, I can’t remember the title anymore. It was like, the Heroes of Dawn and Dusk, or something?” Sumia set the teacup down, and everyone’s eyes were trained on her expectantly. “Well, I was so into it, I was trying to read it while walking around. And, um, I kind of tripped into this bale of hay.”

Severa and Cynthia giggled, and the smirk on Cordelia’s face grew wider. Sumia's first instinct was to smile back; she hid it behind the rim of the glass as she brought it up for another sip.

“But what did you do after you fell?” Cordelia prompted. Cynthia was looking at Sumia, eyes glittering, and Sumia groaned.

“You see, the book was just _so_ good…I just couldn’t put it down, even to pick myself back up. So, I just continued reading, and well, the ending was just so satisfying! And hay isn’t as uncomfortable as you think it’d be!” Sumia tugged on one of her ringlets. “I decided to take a nap,” she mumbled, and the table erupted in laughter.

“You should have seen when we found her!” Cordelia slapped a hand over her mouth to control her laughter. “She was lying head-first in a bale of hay, face plastered on her book, drool making the pages stick together. Gods, washing everything out of your hair must have been a _nightmare_ , Sumia!” It was rare that she looked so pleased, so there was at least that, Sumia told herself as her face burned hot with embarrassment.

“It wasn’t _that_ bad,” Sumia pouted. “If only I had some embarrassing stories about you! But you’re,” she searched for a word, “you’re _you._ ”

Cordelia looked slightly affronted and Severa heaved a melodramatic sigh. “Why am I not surprised there’s nothing juicy about Mother’s trainee antics?” She picked up her glass and downed the rest of her drink – some kind of fruit juice, which made Sumia smile - in a single gulp.

“I was young and foolish once, too, mind you,” Cordelia replied, and sipped at her tea daintily.

“I didn’t notice that, then, you were too busy picking up the slack whenever I messed up,” Sumia said. “And that happened a lot.”

“Even heroes need their training.” Cynthia nodded. “Don’t worry, Mother! You’ll break out of your shell, soon enough!”

Sumia didn’t want to point out the implications of Cynthia’s phrasing on her current state, and she rested her cheek on her hand and sighed.

“Don’t get down, Sumia,” Cordelia said as she refilled her glass. “You’re a fine pegasus knight. I’ve never seen a pegasus trust their rider so completely.”

Sumia focused on taking a bite of her biscuit to hide her blush. Cynthia and Severa exchanged a darting glance – they had done that often throughout this tea time, and Sumia suspected they had been trying to go unnoticed. She forewent her embarrassment in exchange for a knowing smile.

The idea had struck her ~~,~~ when Cynthia had insisted Severa join them at their tea time ~~,~~ as well. Sumia fancied herself the brilliant detective, who popped out of the shadows at the gripping climax and laid out all of the clues, one by one, with only a single logical conclusion. (Except in this case, she wasn’t trying to point to the nobleman’s murderer.) She presented the pieces of evidence to her imaginary audience.

The exchange of hair ornaments, treasured keepsakes from their deceased mothers. How Cynthia and Severa were always side by side - during meal times and chores, sparring and battle. It was not unlike herself and Cordelia until Severa’s entrance a few months ago. How pleasantly surprised Cordelia had been when Sumia had brought up the idea of teatime, and how it had been Cynthia’s idea - "because to be honest, Sumia, I thought your daughter’s been avoiding me ever since she joined."

The tragic circumstances of the children, orphaned so young and forced to fight battles they shouldn’t have had the burden of fighting, had shaped their personalities into ones so vastly different from their parents'. So it made Sumia want to laugh at how it was here where Cynthia's line had lined up with her own. It was almost as if it werean echo of her own life.

Cynthia really was her daughter, to be in love with Severa.

 _If I can't, then I want you to find your happiness, Cynthia_. Sumia scolded herself, then, at the stray thought, because to _have_ Cynthia, she should have found happiness with someone. _But not Cordelia_ , she thought,and she felt truly pathetic for not understanding how an alternate version of herself managed to resolve her feelings towards her best friend.

 _It’s not the time for a pity party, Sumia_ , she reminded herself.

“Well, enough of embarrassing stories.” Severa waved a dismissive hand. “There are other things to share about your trainee days. What I’m interested in now - ” something like a leer came to her face, her eyes lowered conspiratorially - “are stories of a more amorous nature.”

“Whoa, Severa!” Cynthia yelped. “That’s a little far, isn’t it?” She looked between Sumia and Cordelia, then to Severa, her eyebrows furrowed in worry. “Uh, I mean, maybe? That would be good?” She tilted her head, eyeing Severa again, who scoffed.

“What,” Severa twirled one of her pigtails around her finger, “we were a little too busy fighting to preserve a barely adequate way of life. I’m sorry we didn’t have time for teenage romance horror stories, and I’m curious.”

Sumia looked down and fidgeted.

“Well, as I’m sure you’re aware, pegasus knights are only female, and our regiments reflected that,” Cordelia said.

Sumia shrank down further into her chair.

Severa rolled her eyes. “Yes, like that’s really an issue. Ylisse isn’t so uptight about things like that.”

 _Just because it’s allowed won’t change who you end up falling in love with_. She eyed Cordelia, who gave off a pensive air. She didn’t need to be reminded of her love for Chrom, harbored for so many long years, not now, when he was a married man. They had never spoken of it, but Sumia wasn’t blind, not when it came to noticing Cordelia, and her shifts in behavior around him: the tenderness of her voice when she spoke of him, the ferocity with which she fought when it was for his sake, the longing in her eyes when she gazed upon him from a distance.

“Just because Lady Emmeryn was accepting of those sorts of affairs doesn’t mean much,” Sumia said, defeated.

 _But she gets over him_. _The proof is right here_.

A clatter rattled her senses. Severa didn’t bend to pick up the fork she had dropped. Her eyes were wide and her mouth ajar. Cynthia was in a similar state of shock, her hand frozen in mid-motion to bring her teacup to her lips. Cordelia’s eyes were trained on her lap where her fingers interlaced and squeezed each other. Horror displaced the confusion Sumia felt, and her entire body tensed at the unintended cruelty of her words.

“Oh, gods, I’m sorry,” she started. She turned to Cynthia, who avoided her gaze. There was a message in the downturn of her lips and the slump of her shoulders, and it took a moment for Sumia to realize it was disappointment. Cordelia didn’t seem to have reacted to her apology, and Sumia wondered if she had even heard her.

Severa’s cool, almost snooty demeanor was one of her defining traits, but Sumia had never seen her like this, her expression one of shock, hurt, and betrayal. She tried again. “I didn’t mean it in that way, there’s nothing wrong with relationships like tha-!”

“Sumia’s right,” Cordelia interrupted, voice barely audible, and a pang of ice gripped Sumia. “Just because the possibility is there doesn’t mean the tree will bear fruit.”

A slam made the silverware clatter. Severa had stood up, and her hands gripped the edge of the table. “I’m excusing myself.” Her voice was shaky. “Thank you for the tea.” She dug in her pockets and dropped some gold coins on the table before scoffing and charging off.

“Severa!” Cordelia called. “Oh, honestly…”

“No, it was my fault.”

Sumia stared at her plate. The weight of Severa’s reaction, and what it meant, felt like it was crushing her. If it was just her feelings at stake, she might have chosen to run away, hide and dwell over her loss of faith in herself. But her words, no matter how unwittingly, had hurt the person her daughter was in love with. The daughter of the person _she_ was in love with.

It wasn’t just that, though. What Sumia had felt upon seeing the pain in Severa’s eyes wasn’t a compulsion for repentance, or guilt. Instead, there had been a surge of protectiveness so sudden and unexpected, she wasn’t sure how she should have reacted.

“I’m sorry, Cynthia. I didn’t mean it like that at all, it just,” she faltered, “and I should apologize to Severa. Cynthia, could you cover my share, please?”

“Ah, Mother - !”

* * *

 

Cynthia watched Sumia hurry after Severa.

“I hope they’ll be alright,” Cynthia said. Cordelia made a noncommittal grunt. Cynthia straightened up and focused on her heartbeat, which had felt like it had stopped twice within the last few minutes. She took a deep breath. “It’s okay! I know that Mother didn’t mean it, and they’ll clear it up.”

“She’s rather quick to act on her emotions, isn’t she?” Cordelia stared at her glass and slowly rotated it with her fingers.

“Yeah, it’s…kind of a touchy topic,” Cynthia admitted. In that moment, a crack had appeared in the image she of her mothers, as well, and something like horror had gripped her chest. She had just been too shocked to react.

Cordelia’s gaze on her was intent.

“It’s okay. Severa knew, too, that Mother didn’t mean it in that way. She’s not really mad at her, not really.” Cynthia tugged at a stray lock of hair. Neither her nor Severa had brought it up, but there had been that worry, niggling her, and probably Severa, at the back of her mind. _What if our mothers don't end up together? Did we inadvertently change the past, somehow?_

Her mothers’ words had awakened that fear and painted all over it with revulsion. It reminded her of the time when Lissa had reached her only moments after her leg had been pierced by an arrow. The hurt still remained, no matter how quickly the wound had been soothed. _Are Severa and I not good enough, since we weren’t born from a father?_

“You know Severa quite well, don’t you?” Cordelia smiled. “I’m glad she has someone so close to her.”

“R-right!” Cynthia giggled to cover up her feeling of tension. She raced through acceptable answers to spout. “We’ve known each other for forever, after all!”

“Of course,” Cordelia said, and took a bite of her cake. “And…I hope what I said didn’t make you uncomfortable.”

“Ahah,” Cynthia tapped her fingers on her thighs, “I know you didn’t intend it in that way, and I mean, it’s true that you can’t choose who you fall in love with, does it?” She shrugged – nonchalantly, she hoped.

Cordelia laughed, but it was only an empty echo of her earlier mirth. “Right? And even if you do fall in love with someone, there’s nothing you can do past hoping they return your feelings. Love’s quite the cruel mistress.”

Cynthia’s heart ached at the melancholy in Cordelia’s voice. “But it won’t be for you, I can guarantee that! First-hand knowledge and all!” It surprised her how pleading her voice sounded.

“Of course. Severa’s the living embodiment of my happiness.” It sounded like Cordelia was trying to convince herself of that.

“No! Your marriage is definitely happy, and full of love!” Cynthia mentally apologized to Severa. It was hard to feel regret, though, when she saw the dejected expression on her mother’s face. Cordelia smiled, but it wasn’t hard to see she hadn’t been reassured by Cynthia’s assertions.

“I don’t deserve such kind words, not when I’m just wallowing in self-pity. But, thank you, Cynthia.”

Cynthia felt a lick of righteous anger well up in her. “Hey! This isn’t like you at all, Mo-C-Cordelia! You sound like you’ve already given up! One of the most famed Shepherds, the guardians of Ylisse, shouldn’t act like this!”

Her words didn’t faze Cordelia, who picked up her glass and tilted her head back as she finished off the rest of her drink with a few gulps. When she set it back down, her smile was bitter. “I’m being self-indulgent. I have to be petty and intentionally act contrary whenever you’re involved. Otherwise, I’m afraid I’ll like you too much.”

Cynthia was at a loss. “Huh? Why would you say that?”

Cordelia giggled. “I could also be jealous. What I have now will remain unfulfilled, but I’m confident you have a fair shot. Fate works in funny ways, doesn’t it?” Cordelia stacked her plates and stood up. She placed some coins on the table.

“Don’t worry, I left enough for Sumia,” she said. Her face, left blank, fell, and guilt lined her features. “I’m sorry. I told Vaike that I would spar with him this afternoon, otherwise I wouldn’t run out like this.”

Cordelia’s hand reached towards Cynthia, and Cynthia flinched. A flash of confusion and hurt crossed Cordelia’s face, but it had vanished by the time her hand reached far enough to tuck a stray strand of hair behind Cynthia’s ear.

Cynthia’s face burned, and her insides felt so jittery she regretted eating or drinking anything, no matter the logic behind a tea session without any treats. Her heart was pounding so hard she felt the beating course throughout her entire body, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.

She didn’t even notice until she finally looked back up that Cordelia was gone.

* * *

 

Sumia nearly ran into the figure she was chasing after when they turned and tried to slip away between two buildings. She saw why, after barely avoiding the crash, when she noticed the fence looming in front of them.

“You don’t have to.” Severa shook her head. “Do…whatever it is you’re trying to do, I mean.”

Sumia wavered for a moment. She hoped Severa didn't notice, then stood up straight. “Yes, I do! What I said upset you.”

They stood in silence. Severa ground her foot in the dirt, the sand giving way to her foot.

“Um, could you turn around?” Sumia mentally prepared herself. “I don’t want to do this while your back is turned.”

Severa wiped her nose. She sniffled, and Sumia had a thought to reach for her handkerchief, before Severa whirled around, her pigtails following the motion of her spin, the beads jingling from the force. She crossed her arms over her chest in what was supposedly a haughty motion, but was more defensive than anything.

“Apology accepted. Are we done?”

“I-I haven’t even-“ Sumia stammered.

Severa’s face was turned down to the ground, her bangs covering her eyes. “I know what you’re up to. You don’t need to apologize. I just – there wasn’t really any justification for me to get angry, or storm out.”

Sumia was at a loss at how to respond.

“Geez, you don’t have to be so surprised. Not that I blame you, this is _me_ , after all. Acting so cordial is something Mother would do, and heaven knows that if the moment Mother perfects anything, (?) I just come along and do exactly the opposite.”

“I don’t think so,” Sumia said, and when had _she_ become the person to reassure others with crippling low self-esteem? There were issues here, with how Severa spoke of her mother, and Sumia wondered if it was her place to say anything about it. She decided not to – she couldn’t begin to understand the world the children of the future had gone through, and could only serve as part of their solace. She would do anything to be of comfort to any of the children, but it was out of line for her to expect them to welcome her with open arms.

“Honestly, I get it. And, that’s why I’m really sorry. I think if I were as brave as you when I was younger, I would have done the same,” Sumia continued. “If someone said something like that in front of me.” Severa looked up then, and pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes and rubbed them. She finally put her hands down and stifled a sniffle, then met Sumia’s eyes for the first time since they had left the inn.

“Uh, I don’t think we’re on the same wavelength here?”

“I was really insecure about it, too.” Sumia felt a coil of tension wrap around her chest. It felt like it was squeezing her – she had never admitted this to anyone. But with Severa’s reaction had come a revelation, and she felt intense guilt, for how cruel her words had cut. But there was also bone-deep relief, and if she could smile without ruining the mood, she would have.

“It?...Insecure?” The unease and nervousness in Severa’s expression was giving way to confusion.

 _Don’t beat around the bush, Sumia!_ “I-I realized that I was…different. From the people I knew, and all the characters I read about. S-so, what I’m saying is, I get it too!” Sumia nearly shouted the last line, and Severa jumped.

“W-wha?” She had never heard Severa’s voice sound so high before. “What are you even-“

“B-but just because the person I was different for wasn’t…different for me, doesn’t mean your person isn’t different, too!” The words spilled out of Sumia’s mouth, faster and more garbled with each passing second. “Don’t give up, Severa!”

Sumia's chest was heaving and her heart was racing when she stopped.

Severa’s face didn’t betray anything other than her bewilderment, which was to expected. If her secret was revealed so suddenly after being hidden for long, it’s natural she would be shell-shocked, no matter how long she was given to recover.

Sumia debated her next course of action. Would Severa be the type to want to be left alone? Or would she be in need of comfort, or someone to listen to her?

Her debate was settled for her when Severa buried her face in her hands. “Mom, could you…leave? For a sec? I’m trying to wrap my brain around what’s coming out of your mouth.”

Her tone of voice suggested she still hadn’t grasped the meaning of Sumia’s words. Besides, Mom? Severa must really be out of it, to mistake her for Cordelia. Sumia nodded.

“Of course!” Sumia edged away slowly, waiting for any signal to keep moving or to stop. “I’m rooting for you!” she added. Severa didn’t move. Sumia turned around, looked over her shoulder once more, and strode around the corner.

Behind her, she could hear a yelp, and she picked up the pace in her momentary panic.

“What’s this about you understanding!? Isn’t this about _yours_ and Mother’s thick-headedness!? What’s there to understand about me if I don’t get it myself!?”

* * *

 

“She thought - she thought that she had personally offended me!” Severa’s face was bright red. “Like, it was a ‘don’t get mad at me please, actually, I’m gay, too!’” she shouted.

Cynthia took another spoonful of the soup that was tonight’s dinner, being careful to keep the bowl balanced on her knees. She and Severa were huddled next to her pitched tent, sitting on their bundles stuffed with their possessions and trying to take advantage of the last of the sunlight.

She wisely chose not to comment on Severa’s outburst. Cynthia had learned that Severa's love life, romantic inclinations included, was something she didn’t take kindly to being prodded about. She suspected it was the reason Severa’s reaction during their tea time had been more severe than her own numb shock.

“But anyways,” Cynthia flattened out her legs and brandished her spoon, “Mom basically confirmed that she’s in love with someone!” Pride welled up in her chest as she declared it – she had sat at the table, stunned, long after Cordelia had left, going over the conversation over and over again until the revelation had come.

“Right. And Mom also admitted she’s into girls. And that there’s a ‘special’ one.” Severa’s grin was triumphant. “I think we can put two and two together, can’t we?”

Cynthia laughed, relieved. “I was _so_ worried that they still thought of each other as friends or allies! I mean, the way they talked, they went way back but I couldn’t sniff out anything deeper than that.”

“Right. We can change up our strategy,” Severa said. It was rare to see her look so pleased. “We didn’t want to force their romance, but if they’re both already in love with each other, we just need to give them that extra push, don’t you think?”

Cynthia moved to clap in glee, but remembered the bowl of soup at the last second. She dove for it, barely managing to keep it steady with her left hand while saluting with her right. “Ooh, this will be so much fun! We’ll be harbingers of love, purveyors of passion! Heh, I have to remember that one!”

“Meddlesome busybodies works, too,” Severa scoffed, but her grin gave her away.

* * *

 

_Ideas to set up your parents? You're asking me? Um...m_ _aybe a hex? Did Mother use a hex on Father? S-she must have, I’m sure…_

_What say you to this? Sumia swoops down upon her noble steed to rescue Cordelia, trapped and helpless midst a swarm of Risen, at the height of the frenzy of battle! Cordelia, blinded by injury and woozy with fatigue, confesses her love while Sumia rushes to bring her to a healer, unsure of her love’s fate. Oh. Oh? Cordelia is also a valiant rider of pegasi? So, then it require more difficulty to down her in such a scenario…hmph. I will revise this strategy and present it to you on the morn!_

_A bonding of the souls necessitates a meeting of the minds. Might I suggest having them engage in a discussion of their favored literature? I am more one for non-fiction, however, if you require some guidance for possible topics, I have read a few hundred of the most classic novels, plays, collections of poetry, sonnets, and…_

_I…uh, well, lessee. Taguel aren’t so different from humans, really, right? Maybe a good sniff will tell them each other’s intentions…maybe. I don’t know things like this…_

_Oh! I’m glad you asked me. Glad to know that my skills can be put to good use – for those other than my charming self, of course. Hm, well I’ve learned that women just lap up compliments! Why not try egging them on to say nice things about each other’s hair, or legs, or chest…though, would that work for Cordelia? Now, for Sumia, you could definit-ow! Ow! Severa, stop th-Sorry! I’m sorry! Ow!_

… _You’re loud. Leave me alone._

“I can’t do this anymore. I give up. So much for asking advice from our contemporaries, or should I say, social misfits exhibit A.”

“Oh! We’ll figure it out, Severa! Don’t worry!”

* * *

 

Sumia jerked awake from her half-daze when someone slammed a dish and a jug on the table in front of her.

“Mother! Let’s eat together!”

“Uh, yes, of course.” Sumia resituated herself on the bench. She hadn’t started on her food yet, so she waited for Cynthia to sit down. Cynthia wiggled around, and her eyes were bright. Sumia couldn’t help but smile fondly on her.

“Here you go, Mother! Let me pour your drink for you!”

“Oh, thank you.” Sumia accepted the cup and took a deep sip.

“’Ey, Sumia!” Sully was walking over. “Mind if I sit with yo-oop!”

Someone crashed into Sully, who scrambled not to drop her plate. That someone turned out to be Kjelle, still in a full suit of armor. Kjelle straightened herself, her expression sheepish . Sumia hadn’t imagine Kjelle was capable of being so careless – she always seemed every bit a dutiful, put-together knight.

“Ma’am! I apologize. I’ve been searching for you. I recalled a move that the future you taught me, that I haven’t seen you use in our spars yet.”

“Uh,” Sully tilted her head with a look of incredulity. “You’re not implying what I think you’re implying, are ya?”

“What would that be, Mother?” Kjelle’s voice was cool.

Sully rubbed her head with her free hand. “So, you’re saying you want to spar? Now?”

Kjelle’s expression flickered or a split second, before settling back into impassivity. “Time is of the essence, Mother. I must seize the opportunity once inspiration strikes. I might forget the technique once I concentrate on my stomach rather than my body.”

“Oh, alright, let’s get to it, then. I’ll get my dinner reheated, and if not, I can live with cold food for one night. See ya, Sumia! Cynthia!”

“Uh, have fun?” Sumia answered. Cynthia chose to shout her encouragement instead. Kjelle turned as they walked away and nodded at Cynthia, who gave her a thumbs up in return. Sumia looked back and forth between them in confusion. She hadn’t realized Kjelle and Cynthia were friendly. That was unexpected, but good. Besides, everyone got along with Cynthia in their own way. It wasn’t hard to see why. Her energy was overwhelming, but infectious.

The next quarter of an hour proceeded in a similar manner. Other Shepherds approached them, wanting to spend the mealtime together, only to be diverted by one of their children. It was somewhat amusing that the other children were so antsy at this time, and meanwhile _Cynthia_ , ever the rambunctious one, was sitting still and relatively calm.

Poor Brady, though. He had stopped in the middle of the dining hall, staring at Sumia and Cynthia as Maribelle approached them, then started loudly complaining about the ailments and ills he'd been experiencing lately. Maribelle had grown more and more aghast with each description, until she snapped at the “nasty itch smack in the middle of my bum.” Her expression had been distraught as she whisked her son away to the medical tent, much to his chagrin. They traveled so much, plus Brady was one of the healers, so he was always around the sick in their army. Sumia shuddered, and hoped he recovered soon.

Actually, Cynthia’s mild behavior was rather strange as well. She usually scarfed down her food, but tonight she was eating it bite by bite, like she was prolonging the time. Sumia was about to remind her that that her food would grow cold, when Cynthia perked up.

“Cordelia!”

“Hello, Cynthia.” Cordelia and Severa were walking over to them, and Severa quickened her pace to take the seat next to Cynthia. Cordelia eyed them, then set her plate down next to Sumia. “Hey, Sumia!”

“Sorry we were late,” Severa said. “Mother insisted on making sure the floor of the barracks were clean enough to eat off of.” She tapped her knuckles against the wooden table. “It’s definitely cleaner than this, that’s for sure.”

“Not a problem!” Cynthia said, and took a staggeringly large bite of her loaf of bread. Sumia didn’t realize her mouth could go that wide.

“I…wasn’t aware that you had made arrangements for the four of us to eat together.” Cordelia turned to Sumia with a frown. “I apologize for the lateness.”

“Oh! No, it’s nothing,” Sumia replied. “Actually, I wasn’t aware of any plans, either?”

Neither Cynthia nor Severa responded. In fact, they seemed perfectly content to shovel their food down their throats as fast as possible. Sumia felt vaguely embarrassed, and was grateful that the area around them was clear of other Shepherds.

Cordelia looked uncomfortable, as well. She eyed Sumia and quirked her lips at for a try at amusement. Sumia smiled back, but wasn’t sure if she had managed to hide her uncertainty.

“Right! Well, I’m all tuckered out!” Cynthia laid back and patted her stomach. To her horror, Sumia noticed both Cynthia and Severa’s plates had been cleared within the few seconds she and Cordelia had exchanged eye contact.

“Severa, you haven’t even eaten your dessert,” Cordelia commented, eyebrows raised in surprise. “You too, Cynthia.”

“Nah, I’m good.” Severa stood up and picked up her plates. “You can have it, Mother. Well, you two have fun!” With a shake of her head, she flipped one of her pig tails over her shoulder and smirked.

“Right, here’s my dessert, too! You’ll appreciate this, huh, Mother?” Cynthia tipped her plate and the treat slid on top of Sumia’s vegetables. She followed Severa with a wave.

Sumia watched Cynthia run off. She set the cookie aside as she took her fork to her vegetables again, avoiding the pieces of raw carrot.

“Why are they in such a hurry?” Cordelia hadn’t touched her food yet. “Actually, I’ve been meaning to speak to you about those two.” She glanced at Sumia, and her gaze ended up fixed on Sumia’s plate. “You’re such a softie,” she said, eyeing the carrots. “Honestly, your pegasus eats better than you do.”

“Hee hee, you’re saying that like I would mind!” Sumia stabbed another piece of lettuce with gusto.

“I should have known better,” Cordelia admitted. “Anyway, how are you, Sumia?”

Sumia took a deep swig of her drink. “I’m good! There was a traveling peddler, and he had bushels of apples that he was trying to sell off right away before they went bad! How do you feel about apple pie, by the way? Want one?”

“Your pies? Maybe I’ll take a bit from the tenth…no, twentieth batch,” Cordelia laughed. Sumia giggled louder than she expected to.

“Aw, you’re not going to make me eat them all myself, will you? That can’t be good for me!”

“No, I’m saying, you should pawn them off on others, first. Save the last batches for the people you like more. I’ve been with you long enough that I can reserve one of the last spots in line, can’t I?”

Cordelia’s words made Sumia guffaw, and she downed the rest of her drink in a few large gulps.

“I’ll give you the very last pie, then. Oh, but what if the apples are all rotten? You don’t want worms in your pie, do you?” Sumia put her hands to her cheeks and rubbed them over her face. “That can’t be good.”

Cordelia studied her for a long moment. Sumia saw the hand coming, but still squeaked when her bangs were pushed aside and Cordelia’s palm rested on her forehead. The world was all out of focus and fuzzy, except for the touch of Cordelia’s hand. Sumia closed her eyes.

“You’re not running a fever. But your cheeks are red.”

“I’m not sick,” Sumia whined, and poured herself more water. This was kind of addicting, actually.

“Oh, alright. I was just a little taken aback.” Cordelia tried to smile at her, but the way her shoulders slumped and the way she couldn't meet Sumia's eyes told a different story. Sumia pursed her lips and pouted. She never wanted to see Cordelia look down.

Oh. “Do you not want the last pie? I would never give you one with bad apples. I would buy fresh ones, just for you!”

Cordelia looked away, and her cheeks had a faint flush to them. “No, it’s just, shouldn’t Cynthia get the last pie? Or…maybe Chrom?”

“Ummm.” Sumia thought about it. Did Cynthia like pies? She probably did – she liked lots of things. Chrom liked pies too. “But you said to save the best for my favorites.”

“Yes, that’s precisely it.” Cordelia sighed and looked exasperated.

“Well, you’re my favorite.” Sumia cocked her head and felt like something was off. Usually she wouldn’t say things like that out loud, would she? She’d just keep them inside her head, but somehow, saying it out loud made her feel better. _I should tell the truth more often_ , she thought idly. She distracted herself with more of her drink.

“Even more than your own daughter?” Cordelia muttered. It sounded like she was talking to herself, but most of Sumia’s senses were focused on her so she overheard it anyway.

Sumia’s face burned as she realized her error, and she felt woozy. “Sorry. I made you feel awkward, right? You’d probably give your last pie to Chrom, huh?”

Cordelia shook her head. “That’s not even possible,” and Sumia didn’t know how to react to the painful twinge in her chest. “Just…never mind, Sumia.”

Cordelia filled up her cup with the jug and was about to take a sip when she paused. “I thought this was water.”

“It is!” Sumia giggled, glad she could say something to Cordelia that wasn’t awkward.

“Uh, pretty sure water isn’t supposed to look the color of eggplants.” Cordelia sniffed the liquid. “It doesn’t smell off?”

Sumia couldn’t even bring herself to focus on Cordelia anymore from the dizziness. She leaned her head on her hand and observed Cordelia swirling the jug around. Well, it tasted like water, Sumia mused, so Cordelia should just get over herself and drink it.

“Hey, Sumia, was this already here?”

Sumia blinked slowly. “No, Cynthia brought it. Why?”

“Cynthia? And Severa too, they just left us here with it?” Cordelia voice grew louder, and Sumia wanted to cower because she knew how harsh Cordelia’s scoldings got.

What’s wrong? Sumia felt so woozy that she wondered if she had even asked her question out loud. She put her head down on the wood, and the cool relief made her sigh. _Sorry Cordelia, but it feels even nicer than your hand_.

Cordelia grabbed her shoulder. “Hey, Sumia, how much of this did you drink!?”

“I’m tired, please stop that,” Sumia said, but she wasn’t sure if Cordelia heard her, because Cordelia was still shaking her. She tried to bang her head against the table to shake the sleepiness off and only managed to rub her forehead against it, and was only distantly aware of Cordelia’s presence leaving her side before she drifted off.

* * *

 

Two weeks after what Cynthia mentally dubbed the truth serum incident, the memory of which still made her wince because of the many verbal lashings she and Severa had to withstand, and she could barely find it in herself to muster up the patience to deal with the two birdbrains that were her mothers.

Cordelia’s face had been bright red when she had found them after Sumia had succumbed to the effects of the truth serum. Cynthia chalked it up to a win, wishing she had been there to see the confession of feelings but feeling proud of herself nonetheless. It was only after extensive shouting and Cordelia dragging them both back to Sumia and shaking her awake that realization dawned. Sumia was completely oblivious to her surroundings, but _something_ had happened, and it had only served to leave Cordelia rattled.

“I don’t get it,” Cynthia whined. “They’ve been looking through that patch of daisies for _forever_.”

“Shut up,” Severa hissed. “They’re spending time together - that’s enough, right? It's the first time since we decided to go more hands-off. I had to wake up before dawn to do all of Mother’s regular chores so she’d actually have time to slack off. Oh, I’m sorry, I mean, contribute to raising army morale by beautifying our working environment.” Severa flashed a grin. “That was some surprisingly clever wording by Mom.”

“I know, huh? I think Mother’swhoI got my wordsmithing abilities from!” Cynthia craned her neck for a better view.

Cynthia and Severa were sprawled out on the ground behind a particularly large boulder. Cordelia crouched a few javelin throws away examining a patch of daisies, while Sumia had settled for a seat next to the stream, head on her knees, feet perched on top of one of the rocks in the stream, gazing dreamily into the running water.

“Sumia,” Cordelia called out. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about, actually. _Sumia_ , you’re not dozing off, are you? …Sumia?”

“U-uh, of course not!” Sumia shook her head to chase her haze away and scrambled on her hands and knees over to Cordelia. “Yes, what is it?” They put their heads together and looked down at something.

Had Cordelia found something to show Sumia? Or maybe she had brought something, instead, Cynthia thought gleefully.

She held a bated breath. This was it. It was so _perfect_ , her mothers alone (sort of) and pressed close together, speaking to each other in lowered voices, with Cordelia’s hand resting on Sumia’s arm (the most contact they’d had since Cynthia joined the company, she noted proudly). Maybe Cordelia had reconciled her own feelings after the truth serum – if that was true, then the pile of extra chores would have been completely worth it. “Oh, this is so romantic!” Cynthia whispered excitedly. “C’mon, c’mon, get to the smooching!”

She felt, rather than heard, Severa muffle a groan next to her. “Gods, you’re such a weirdo,” Severa said. “Most kids _don’t_ like it when their parents get all lovey-dovey in front of them.” But there was a glint in her eye as she watched them with just as much anticipation.

“Oh, well, at first, the idea was kind of weird. But at this point, I’d be okay with any progress at all,” Cynthia said. _They’re actually touching_! she wanted to add, but she didn’t think Severa would share that much enthusiasm. At least, not openly. “Geez, I can’t hear a thing. What’s the point of whispering if you’re alone?”

“Hmph. They never make things easy for us.” Severa moved into a kneeling position, searching for any signs that their presence had been noticed. “I’m scooting a bit closer. Don’t follow unless I tell you to.”

Cynthia curled up so that she was sitting, grimacing as she rubbed her legs slowly, tingles shooting up and down the limbs. She _hated_ when her legs fell asleep. “Take your time,” she said, biting her lip to suppress a yelp at the sparks that any shift of her legs set off.

Severa edged along in a half-crouch, her end goal an outcropping of trees, their fronds thick enough to provide sufficient cover if she managed to reach it. Her cover would be blown the moment either Sumia or Cordelia looked up, but they were still deep in conversation. It had to be a serious discussion, then, and Cynthia wished she could borrow Yarne’s gigantic and floppy ears to eavesdrop.

Severa kept her strides swift yet silent, avoiding any patches of dry foliage without even looking as she kept her gaze fixed on Sumia and Cordelia. It was a dance long mastered by necessity by each of them from the future they'd long since mastered by necessity in the future, etc, due to the Risen’s reliance on their hearing. They were a dangerous hivemind who swarmed any person they took notice of, but a well-executed stealth attack could easily cut down the individual monsters.

Cynthia watched Severa as she crept within distance of the tree. Severa paused, braced herself, and leapt, spinning on her upon landing and flattening herself against the trunk in one sinuous movement.

Sumia and Cordelia were engrossed in conversation, and given Severa’s frown as she angled her head towards them, - still speaking in hushed voices. Cynthia met Severa’s eyes, and Severa flipped one of her pig tails behind her shoulder. Cynthia shrugged and tried to look apologetic. Severa scoffed.

“Oh!”

Cynthia froze, but Severa jumped at the sudden noise.

“I know what we can do!” Sumia continued and clapped added, clapping her hands together.

“Sumia, that was really - ” Cordelia hesitated - “loud. I think you scared some birds out of the trees.”

“Sorry, birds - “ Sumia didn’t look very sorry - “but look!”

Sumia held out a daisy proudly. Severa and Cynthia exchanged concerned glances. Cordelia just looked exasperated.

“Sumia, I know that your flower fortunes are good motivators for yourself, but to actually decide something like this from them - “

“That’s exactly _why_ I’m doing this!” Sumia said. “See, we can’t make a wrong decision this way. If this ends up working, than that’s good for everyone!”

“But Sumia,” Cordelia put her face in her palm of her hand, “what if it _doesn’t_ work?”

“Well, this isn’t a do-or-don’t type of thing.” Sumia twirled the daisy around and smiled. “This is a now-or-later decision. The question is just whether a war is the best battlefield for struggles of love. If the flower says now, and now isn’t right, then just follow the path fate set. But if now _is_ the right time, then we’ve challenged fate and brought everyone a happier future.”

Cordelia shook her head. “You become the most poetic when you make absolutely zero sense. What I would give to understand what’s going on in your head at times, Sumia,” she chided,shoulders slumped in defeat, but her smile was full of fondness.

“But you understand what’s coming out of my mouth, so that’s well enough,” Sumia said, and plucked off a petal with a flourish. “Do what I say. Your turn.”

Cordelia sighed, and pulled off a petal. “Go with my idea.”

“Do what I say.”

“Go with my idea.”

Cynthia wondered how quietly she could bang her head on the boulder. When she looked up, Severa’s hand was on the hilt of her sword, the grip gripping so tight that the skin had gone pale as bone, and she Cynthia could swear her eye was twitching.

When their gazes met again, it was apparent they were both asking the same question.

 _Are our mothers letting a_ _**daisy** _ _determine the outcome of their love lives?_

“Go with my id….ah.”

“Aha! You have to pull it, Cordelia! And there’s the last one! Looks like my idea won out. So, let’s start thinking up our plan now.”

Plan? What plan?

Cordelia stood and pulled Sumia to her feet. “Alright. I lost – I won’t argue. I still think we should let things run their natural course, though.”

“Sometimes we deserve a different ending than what fate gave us,” Sumia responded curtly, dusting off her skirt.

What?

Severa looked equally puzzled, but more cautiously hopeful as she, like Cynthia, must have been running through the conversation in her head.

Sumia _had_ said love earlier, right? And whether now was the right time. But Cordelia wanted to wait, and well, truthfully, that part did make Cynthia uncomfortable, because why wouldn’t she want to be together with Mother as soon as possible?

Moreover, what plan?

Cynthia pinched herself. _Forget that_! she scolded herself. _Your alternate future self just came back into existence!_ She felt so giddy it was almost impossible to contain herself.

She aimed a thumbs up at Severa, who buried her face in her hands as her body trembled. But Cynthia recognized her sister’s moods, and knew that, now at least, she was feeling the same emotions as Cynthia.

“Let’s head back to camp first,” Cordelia said. “My pack is next to bursting with flowers.”

“Right,” Sumia said. She tossed the naked stem into the stream and the two stood sidebyside, watching as the water carried it away, while Cynthia and Severa silently celebrated their victory.

But not for much longer, hopefully. Cynthia wished her mothers told would tell them the good news as soon as possible, because there was nothing more she wanted than to share in this happiness as a family.

* * *

 

Sumia and Cordelia had a plan.

(Or more like, _she_ had a plan, and thanks to a helpful daisy and her good fortune, Cordelia had reluctantly agreed to help her.)

Their daughters were in love with each other. She and Cordelia both agreed on that part at least. Sumia had been a little let down at how readily Cordelia had accepted it when she brought it up, and then confided that she had come to the same conclusion. But honestly, it wasn’t that hard to believe – if Sumia had figured it out, then of course Cordelia could have.

Sumia and Cordelia had a plan - to aid their daughters in coming to terms with their feelings for each other.

(In other words, to pry into their private affairs and be meddlesome busybodies, Cordelia had sighed.)

Step one of said plan: dispel any doubts their daughters would have of their mother’s unerring support and approval.

“It’s not enough to just _tell_ them that we’re fine with them having a relationship,” Cordelia had said.

“Severa had reacted badly,” Sumia agreed. She remembered the conversation she and Severa had after Severa had stormed off, and a twang of guilt hit her. “Even now, I don’t think she really has shaken it off.”

“So,” Cordelia sighed, but Sumia had a feeling that she was taking this just as or even more seriously than Sumia was, “what we do is, we _show_ them we mean it.”

That was then, and this was now: post-supper, Sumia, Cordelia, Cynthia, and Severa barely able to squeeze into Severa’s tent, indulging their younger, girlish selves – memories that seemed so distant for Sumia and Cordelia now, and ones that Cynthia and Severa never had the chance to experience.

Which meant sharing the teenage romance horror stories they hadn’t gotten around to at their last disastrous get-together.

“Okay,” Sumia said, “so maybe you didn’t have time to meet up with new people since you were too busy protecting them. But you and the other children were all close, right?”

“They’re all insufferable,” Severa said flatly, and Cynthia giggled.

“Owain, Inigo, Gerome, Brady, Laurent, Yarne,” Cordelia counted them off on her fingers. “Nothing, really? And you’ve known each other since you were children, as well.”

“Laurent and Yarne weren’t really there when we were little,” Cynthia admitted. “But they’ve been our staunch, fearless allies in all our encounters with the Risen!”

Severa scoffed. “Did you really just mention Yarne and fearless in the same breath?”

Sumia met Cordelia’s gaze, and took her slight nod as encouragement. She braced herself. “Well, what about Lucina? Or Kjelle, I’ve seen you spar with her, Severa. Noire is a sweetheart, too, right? And I don’t know Nah very well, but she’s cute.” _Or each other?_ she wanted to add, butthat was _definitely_ being too forward.

Severa eyed her suspiciously. Cynthia put her finger to her cheek.

“Um, well, Nah wasn’t really around when we were kids, either. Lucina’s like a sister to me, though!” She shook her head and shuddered. “That’s just weird!”

Severa was the one Sumia had confessed to about her unrequited love, so she wasn’t surprised by her reaction, but Cynthia had taken Sumia’s comment in perfect stride. Well, if there was one person to be unfazed, it’d be Cynthia. Sumia fidgeted, and was sure her own face was more flushed than either of the two girls'.

Cordelia looked uneasy, as well. She rubbed the side of her neck. “Well, if you two won’t confess, then I’ll go ahead. Do you remember Agnes, Sumia?”

Huh? Cordelia refused to meet Sumia’s gaze, and Sumia tilted her head. “Yeah, she was one of the older trainees. She was knighted, what, three years before we were?”

“Right,” Cordelia said. She hesitated. “She was r-really beautiful, right?” She took a deep breath. “Her hair was a s-shade of silver, like...moonlight, and uh, wow, were her muscles really defined! I could never take my eyes off her. Really! I got as clumsy as Sumia does now, around her!”

The burst of words ceased as abruptly as it had began, and Cordelia looked ready to spring up and sprint out of the tent. If she did, Sumia would be right on her footsteps.

“Wait, what the hell!?”

“M-Cordelia, what are you saying!?”

Sumia seized on the opportunity before it slipped away.

“R-right! I couldn’t even look at her straight without wanting to swoon!” Sumia exclaimed. It was true, too, even if she stammered when admitting it.

Cynthia spluttered. Severa made a high, strangled noise not unlike the cries of a dying cat.

Cordelia, spurred on, slapped her hands onto her crossed legs.

“She was my first kiss! Behind the barracks, by the well, when we were supposed to be getting ready for bed!”

It felt like being smacked by a broom to the head. Or expecting something to land on, but finding nothing but air. Sumia sat, dazed and frozen, like she was still tumbling through nothing.

She was entirely ready to hit something, hard, and feel the pain and embarrassment that came with it.

“Okay! Okay!” Severa made an X with her arms. “Geez! You two! You can stop tiptoeing around. You don’t have to break the news of your sexual inclinations to us. We’re your _children_ \- that kind of ruined the surprise already.”

“Yeah, we aren’t going to be shocked that our mothers are attracted to women! But, really!” Cynthia's tongue lolled out. “Blech! Too much information!”

There was something wrong, off, with Severa’s and Cynthia’s words, but Sumia was still trying to process Cordelia’s confession. If it were just Cordelia admitting her attraction towards their knight sister, Sumia could accept it as part of their charade, but she wouldn’t take things this far if it wasn’t the truth. _A girl?_ part of her asked, while the other part clamored, _What about Chrom? Hasn’t it always been Chrom?_

Cordelia broke the silence.

“Excuse me?”

“Honestly!” Severa crossed her arms. “If it hasn’t been obvious yet, we’ve been trying to set you two up for forever! Sorry for wanting to _exist_ in this world!”

Cynthia nodded, but a grin broke out on her face. “We were waiting for you to tell us, but the metaphorical cat’s out of the bag, now!”

Something didn’t add up here. Sumia’s mind was frighteningly blank as to the possibilities.

“You know that we know, about you two?” Sumia asked, careful of how much she revealed with her words.

Severa rolled her eyes. “Oh, come off it, you were bound to figure it out, eventually.”

“But for the sake of my nerves, thanks for doing it sooner rather than later!” Cynthia’s smile was the brightest Sumia had ever seen it, and it was _Cynthia_.

As if on cue, Cynthia leapt forward and embraced Cordelia, who gasped.

“Ohhh, I’m so happy!” Cynthia’s voice sounded on the verge of breaking. “Mom, I missed you so much!”

“Geez, hold it together.” Severa scolded, but her voice sounded oddly choked. Cordelia reached out and hugged Cynthia back, seemingly out of reflex, but her face was bewildered.

“Mom?” she asked.

“Mom?” Sumia echoed.

Severa, a rare, wide grin on her face, if a little embarrassed, answered her question. “Yes, _Mom_.”

It was almost laughable, as Severa glanced between the two of them, how slowly the happiness on her face was displaced by horror.

“Um. Mom?” she whispered, staring straight at Sumia.

“No?” Sumia tried.

“Oh gods.” Cynthia let go of Cordelia. “Ohnoohnoohno.”

“Did you mean, mother-in-law, perchance?” Cordelia’s voice wavered.

Cynthia scrunched her face up and shook her head furiously chanting _no no no no_ , while Severa shivered and rubbed her arms.

“What!? You’ve got to be joking me! Gross! Indecent! Disgusting!” She pulled at her bangs as if trying to pull them down to cover her face.

That’s when it clicked, as Sumia’s gaze was drawn to Severa’s hair. _Her hair is the same color as mine_ , she thought. _And…those are my beads she’s wearing in them_.

But…

Wait…

That wasn’t possible.

“Wha-How!?” she shouted, and Cynthia and Severa cringed in unison.

“What?” Cordelia was looking at her. “What do you mean, ‘how’?”

“Y-you, me,” Sumia pointed between them frantically, “them!” She stuck her finger at Cynthia and Severa, who looked mortified.

Cordelia pursed her mouth. “I’m afraid I’m not following.”

Cynthia looked at Severa, then at Cordelia. Severa buried her face in her knees, refusing to look up, and Cynthia sighed and slumped her shoulders. She bit her lip. Everything about her radiated shame and defeat.

“Severa and I are the daughters of the two most famed Ylissian pegasus knights. And when I say that, I mean, _literally_ the daughters of the two most famed Ylissian pegasus knights.”

“What sort of-”

“We’re sisters. We’re your daughters. _Yours_. Sumia-and-Cordelia, Sumia-plus-Cordelia, your bloodlines, everything!” Severa piped in, admitting it in a pained voice.

“That’s not possible,” Cordelia said flatly. “Sumia and I are not capable of having our own children.”

“There’s this elixir, it’s, well, okay, we’re your _children_. From the _future_. We _traveled back in time_. And you’re going to tell me that you truly believe that nothing exists that allows for two women to have their own children!?” Severa implored, and she sounded desperate, even close to tears, her hand placed over her chest. Cynthia let out a soft whimper.

After a silence that lasted an eternity, too aware of the tiniest shift of movement in the room, Sumia placed her hands on her lap. “I believe you.”

Cordelia sighed. “I believe you, too. I’m sorry I doubted you.”

Sumia couldn’t bring herself to meet Cordelia’s eyes. She desperately wanted to move, to do anything besides sit here in place.

“We're sorry, too.” Cynthia was trembling.

“Um, this is your tent, Severa. I…Sumia? Could we talk?” Cordelia gnawed at her lip and cast her a sideways glance.

“Yeah, sure.” Was that her voice? There was no one else who could have answered. Of course, the moment she could get up, fear struck her still. Sumia didn’t feel like she was in her own body, which moved to follow Cordelia out of the tent.

* * *

 

The spot Cordelia chose was a five-minute walk away, on a grassy hillside. There was nothing around them save for the grass below and stars above. Not a single word had been exchanged on their trek here, not even the simple “watch your step here” that Sumia had become accustomed to hearing, and, she realized now, relying on. She noticed the rocks and cracks in her path and managed not to trip this time around, but it was no consolation.

As she pulled her skirt underneath her so she could sit comfortably, Sumia didn’t know how to break the silence that hung over them.

“Severa is my daughter…and she’s yours too,” Cordelia finally said, her voice a little raspy. “It’s the most outlandish thing I’ve heard, even more so than the children of the future thing. But I must admit, everything suddenly makes sense.”

“So, you believe them?” said Sumia.

“I hardly can, but what else is there to do? I don’t want to be a mother who would doubt her own child.”

“Me neither,” Sumia said. “But, still, to just spring this on us is a little…” She let her voice trail off, unable to voice her thoughts.

Cordelia remained silent. Sumia could feel the dread growing in her. If it was for Severa’s sake, then Cordelia would do anything – even marry someone she didn’t love. The thought gripped Sumia, and it felt like being crushed, unable to move.

And if it was for Cynthia’s sake, then Sumia could also do anything too. She could lie to herself about the happiness of being with someone she was in love with, even if they didn’t love her back.

“Does it bother you?”

“Eh?” Sumia’s eyes stung.

“Does it bother you that…you…at least, another you, is with a woman?”

“What!? Heavens, no! Love is love,” Sumia said, apparently sternly enough to convince Cordelia, who nodded slowly.

“I see.” Cordelia still looked uneasy. “Is it because it’s me, then? Not that I blame you, I’ve...always tried to hide how I felt for you, so learning this about your best friend must have been quite the shock.”

What?

“…Sumia?”

Huh?

“Sumia!” Cordelia snapped, and Sumia winced. “Ah…I’m sorry, it’s just, this wasn’t supposed to happen, and I’m not the best with dealing with losing control like thi-”

“Wait, wait, Cordelia!” Sumia, finally getting ahold of herself, grabbed her by the shoulders. Cordelia flinched at the contact. “Wait! Wait! You have to start over from the beginning, because I don’t know what the pegasus dung is going on!”

That last part was true – her mind was spinning and it felt like her heart was about to burst from her chest from Cordelia's words. But she couldn’t let her fantasies grab hold of her. Nothing would make this situation worse than having any kernel of hope crushed.

Cordelia hesitated, then with a sharp movement, broke out of Sumia’s grip. “I’m asking you if my being in love with you makes you uncomfortable.” She was blinking furiously. “And if it does, I can’t promise to make the feelings go away, but I swear I will never let it change our relationship. I value my friendship with you above all else.”

Sumia sat, stunned. _In love_. Cordelia had said _in love_ , or had she? No, there could be no mistaking those words, no matter how much that voice had wavered in saying them. But that wasn’t what was important right now. Cordelia looked miserable, and wretched, and Sumia never wanted to see her like that.

“I love you, too.”

Cordelia jumped like a frightened animal, then seemed to shrink into herself. “Sumia, you-“

It was like the floodgates had opened, and the thoughts circling and clouding her mind poured out all at once. “When Cynthia told me about my other self – her real mother – I couldn’t see myself in her at all! I didn’t want to be someone who had left their child behind, so I told myself that I wasn’t like the mother she knew at all - ”Sumia took a breath-“but it’s even scarier now, because if we were together…if that Sumia was also in love with her Cordelia, then I feel that much closer to her. Which means, I’m not so different from her.” Sumia let out her breath, and it felt like she was exhaling everything holding her back all at once.

Cordelia’s eyes were closed. “Severa told me too, that she…never forgave me, for going off to protect Chrom. But, that might have just been the excuse to be with you, too, in the battle. I don’t think I could ever let you fight on your own.” A shudder seemed to run through her body, and Cordelia hugged herself.

Cynthia had never told her about how she died, or how her husband (no, it was wife now, Sumia reminded herself) perished. But from the sorrow in Cordelia’s voice at just the thought of losing her, Sumia desperately wished that Cordelia had been the first to fall.

There was still that lingering thought though, that hammered away at her even as Cordelia confessed her love for her.

“What about Chrom?” Sumia finally blurted out. “I thought that…you love Chrom, don’t you?”

Cordelia shifted, and though the movement was almost imperceptible, it felt like the space between them widened by miles. Sumia plucked a blade of glass. When Cordelia continued to remain silent, Sumia split it down the middle.

“I’m a very selfish person, Sumia.”

“W-what!?” Sumia yelped at the unexpected response. She took a deep breath, mind filled with a dozen different replies. “No, you’re not. You’re always doing everything you can to help out, and you worry so much about everyone, even me. And honestly I don’t know why you bother, I’m just a hindrance to the army, and-“

“Sumia!”

Sumia stopped talking and pouted instead. Cordelia laughed.

“I should start from the beginning. But I can’t tell you everything, like the story of when I fell in love with Chrom - ” Sumia’s chest tightened - “because it’s something we promised to keep between the two of us. And I’m glad for that, because I don’t want you to think less of me, Sumia.”

Sumia wanted to make a retort to that, but bit her tongue.

“When we were first trainees, I was so obsessed with being perfect. I thought that only by being flawless could I be a worthwhile person.” Cordelia paused and looked up at the sky. The breeze blew her hair so that it hid her face from Sumia.

“So, I did everything I could to make sure no one could doubt me, nor could I ever doubt myself. I threw all of myself into my training, and Sumia - ” Cordelia turned to face her, whose first reaction was to look away from that honest, piercing gaze - “we weren’t even friends then, and you can tell me - you thought of me as cold then, didn’t you?”

“I-no, it wasn’t that,” Sumia stammered. “I was dreadfully shy then, so we just never had a chance to talk and connect then. That’s all!”

Cordelia gave a small, affectionate smile before continuing. “Anyway, one day, my ego and shortsightedness led me to do something enormously foolish. Something that could have killed me, and if our leaders had found out, probably gotten me kicked out of the pegasus knights.”

She pulled her knees up close and buried her face in them. “Chrom found me then, and instead of thinking me pathetic and treating me with the disdain I deserved, he told me that he admired me. ‘Cordelia, you’re so driven.’ Can you believe that?” Cordelia’s laugh was almost pained. “But then of course he scolded me for neglecting myself, and that my duty to myself was great as my duty to the knights.

“It…wasn’t that I didn’t think of about myself before then. In fact, that’s all I did, with my fixation on how everyone thought of me. I just couldn’t admit it to myself. But when he told me that, when I was taught he taught me it was okay to be selfish, the first selfish thought I then ever had was, ‘I want him to look at me’.” She chuckled and shook her head. “And you know how hard it is to break a pegasus of a bad habit, once it’s ingrained in them? Even though I was told it was okay to want things for myself…that was the only selfishness I allowed myself for a long, long time.

“I think a part of me will always love Chrom. That’s just how my heart works. I just can’t let things go,” Cordelia admitted. “But Chrom and I are too different. I can’t share my entire heart with everyone like Chrom does. Nor can I be content with sharing another person’s love with all of Ylisse. I’m the type of person devoted to only the few I choose to serve. That’s why I’m fit to be a knight, but Chrom…Chrom is fit to be the Exalt.”

Cordelia’s last words had a note of finality. She rested her chin on her knees and stared out at Sumia slowly let out the breath she had been holding, trying to preserve the quiet.

They sat engrossed in their own thoughts, and while before she might have found the silence agonizing, after the conversation it almost seemed comfortable. Freeing. Like how their time spent together had felt before Severa’s arrival, Sumia realized.

She turned to Cordelia.“So, does that mean, if you say you love me, that you’re selfish about me, too?” she asked teasingly. She tilted her head, trying to lighten the mood and wipe the somber expression off of her friend’s face.

Her plan worked, and Cordelia flushed. “Well. I wouldn’t mind if you didn’t smile as much at everyone else. Oh, I’m awful!” Cordelia slapped herself lightly on both cheeks.

Sumia giggled in relief. “I don’t know about smiling less, but how about if I just added in some extra smiles, but they were all - ones only for you?”

“I think that’s an acceptable trade-off,” Cordelia muttered. “Oomph!”

Sumia held on tightly to Cordelia, whose body had stiffened at the first touch. “Ah, Cordelia, I really, really do love you!”

After a moment, Cordelia reached and brushed aside some of Sumia’s bangs, and pressed her mouth to the exposed skin. She murmured something, but Sumia couldn’t make out any of the words.

She decided to focus instead on the warmth emanating from the contact of Cordelia’s lips with her skin, which told her much more about than mere words ever could.

* * *

 

“Ooh, I don’t get what it is with those animals!” Severa whined, and hissed as Sumia pressed the cloth bag filled with ice to the swollen bump on her knee.

“She was just scared, Severa. Pegasi are rather flighty…you can’t just try to hop on one without gaining their trust first.”

“Sorry I just don’t know anything! Cynthia was always the one who had the magic touch - animals fell over themselves trying to let her pet them or ride them!” Severa ran her arm over her eyes.

“Um.” Sumia thought for a moment on how to phrase it gently. “Well, animals in general don’t like it if you approach them suddenly. Their instinct is telling them you’re a predator.”

“So you’re saying I deserved getting kicked,” Severa said. “Yeah, I think so too. Both my mothers and even my sister could do it - I don’t know why I’m so bad with them. Just makes sense that I can’t do anything right. Well, I'm sorry I’m such a disappointment!”

Sumia reached out with a tentative hand. Severa allowed the hand to rest on her cheek, although she turned her face so that Sumia couldn’t see her eyes.

“I don’t think that at all, Severa. You’re my daughter, and I love you. There’s nothing you could do to make me feel anything bad about you.”

Severa sniffed loudly, and Sumia moved to sit next to her on the ground.

“If you wanted some advice, I think you just have to think of pegasi differently.”

“Differently? Like how?” Severa’s voice sounded stuffy. Sumia resisted giving into her first instinct to pull her daughter into a hug.

“They’re kind of like people, so you have to treat them based on their personality. But in general, most pegasi are a little prickly at first. So ~~,~~ you have to be kinder and gentler than you thought you’d ever have to be.” _They kind of remind me of you, actually¸_ Sumia thought, but though she felt it would be wise not to mention that bit. “But the payoff’s worth it. Once you gain their trust, they’ll be unfailingly loyal.”

“Is that so,” Severa said. “I don’t think I need to say this, but kind and gentle isn’t really the type of thing I’m good at.”

“Me neither!” Sumia said, and Severa scoffed. “No, really – I’m so clumsy, I don’t think the word gentle even exists in my vocabulary at times! But with animals, it comes so naturally. They won’t judge you, or think differently of you if you screw up! I know you think they may not be for you, but having another living being accept you just as you are, and not without expecting anything else, is a wonderful feeling.”

Severa finally looked at her, and her eyes glittered. “R-really!? I,“-she flushed brightly-“I mean, it doesn’t sound so bad when you put it like that.”

“Right! It comes in little steps though, so how would you like to help me brush her later?”

There seemed to be an internal conflict battling it out in her daughter’s mind right now. “That sounds nice,” she finally conceded. “Um, but you remember that-“

“Yes, we can go dress shopping beforehand! I think I saw this one cute dress in town that will _really_ flatter you! And then tea with your sister and Cordelia afterwards, of course. But it’s fine! If we brush her when it’s late, she’ll probably be more tired and relaxed anyway. ”

“They'd better make it on time.” Severa tried to pout, but the smirk on her face gave away her true feelings. “I feel awful for Mother - Cynthia said she wanted to make up a new opening move on the battlefield with her.”

“I don’t think Cordelia minds at all,” Sumia said, and smiled. Cordelia had confided in Sumia earlier about her doubts about regarding her and Cynthia’s relationship – _I love her dearly, Sumia, but what if she thinks I’m too serious? Do you think we’ll get along_? She had been ecstatic after Cynthia asked her to spend time with her for the sake of coming up with a new entrance flourish.

“Right,” Severa said, a disbelieving look on her face. “Hey, Mom…if we leave now, we can stop at that cute accessory store before going to look at the dresses. There was this set of four bracelets, and it wouldn’t be so bad. To have them as a family thing.” Severa looked up through her eyelashes at Sumia. If anything, she was similar to animals in the overwhelming urge she inspired in Sumia to hug, squeeze, and lavish her with love and adoration. Maybe with a head pat for good measure.

“That sounds wonderful,” Sumia answered, and Severa’s face brightened so much that it almost glowed. “We’ll save it for teatime and surprise Cordelia and Cynthia. Shall we go, then?”

“Right!” Severa grabbed Sumia’s hand. “Also, there was this really cute necklace, but I called dibs already!”

Sumia looked down and hid her smile as her daughter pulled her along.

**Author's Note:**

> A few canon notes:
> 
> The only mention of Cordelia/Chrom's backstory is a throwaway remark in Cordelia/Ricken B. I took it and ran with it.  
> The truth serum comes from Kjelle/Severa's Harvest Scramble Conversation.  
> The hair dye mentioned by Anna is used on Lucina, Owain, Inigo, and Severa in Hot Springs Scramble.


End file.
